Mūsā Pasha Ḥamdī (; c.1810–1865) was a Turco-Egyptian soldier and politician. He rose to the rank of '' mīrlivā'' (major general) in the

Egyptian Army The Egyptian Army (), officially the Egyptian Ground Forces (), is the land warfare branch (and largest service branch) of the Egyptian Armed Forces. Until the declaration of the Republic and the abolishment of the monarchy on 18 June 1953, it w ...

and served as the

Governor-General of the Sudan The governors of pre-independence Sudan were the colonial administrators responsible for the territory of Turco-Egyptian Sudan and Anglo-Egyptian Sudan, an area equivalent to modern-day Sudan and South Sudan. List (Dates in italics indicat ...

from 1862 until his death. He was a man of forceful character and some wealth, owning lands in Fayyūm.Richard Hill, ''A Biographical Dictionary of the Sudan'' (London: Frank Cass, 1967), pp. 283–84. A Circassian by origin, Mūsā entered the Egyptian Army at a time when Egypt was an autonomous province of the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

. He was a low-ranking officer when he took part in the fighting around

Gallabat Gallabat () is a village in the Sudanese state of Al Qadarif. It lies at one of the country's border crossing points with Ethiopia; on the other side of the border is Ethiopia's corresponding border village Metemma. History The town and district ...

during the Egyptian invasion of Ethiopia in 1837. He was first

adjutant Adjutant is a military appointment given to an Officer (armed forces), officer who assists the commanding officer with unit administration, mostly the management of “human resources” in an army unit. The term is used in French-speaking armed ...

to the Governor-General Aḥmad Pasha Manliklī during the war against the Beja in 1844. He earned a reputation for cruelty during this campaign. He then led an expedition against Nāṣir ibn Abbukr, the ''

makk ''Makk'' (plural ''mukūk''), also spelled ''mak'', ''mek'' or ''meek'',Robert S. Kramer, Richard Andrew Lobban Jr. and Carolyn Fluehr-Lobban, ''Historical Dictionary of the Sudan'', 4th ed. (Scarecrow Press, 2013), p. 293.Richard Andrew Lobban Jr. ...

'' of

Taqali Taqali (also spelled Tegali from the Tagale people) was a state of Nuba peoples that existed in the Nuba Mountains, in modern-day central Sudan. It is believed to have been founded in the eighteenth century, though oral traditions suggest it ...

, in the Nuba Hills before he was appointed governor of

Kordofan Kordofan ( ') is a former province of central Sudan. In 1994 it was divided into three new federal states: North Kordofan, South Kordofan and West Kordofan. In August 2005, West Kordofan State was abolished and its territory divided between N ...

. In 1851 Mūsā was appointed deputy governor-general of the Sudan and led a military expedition against the Ḥalanqa and the Shukrīya people of the Buṭāna. Afterwards, he returned to Egypt and was appointed governor of Girga, in which capacity he accompanied the ''

wāli ''Wāli'', ''Wā'lī'' or ''vali'' (from ''Wālī'') is an administrative title that was used in the Muslim world (including the Rashidun, Umayyad and Abbasid caliphates and the Ottoman Empire) to designate governors of administrative divis ...

'' Muḥammad Saʿīd Pasha on his visit to Sudan in 1856–57. In 1857 Saʿīd abolished the governorate-general as part of a policy of decentralization, but in 1862 he reversed policy and appointed Mūsā to the re-established post. Before he was confirmed in office, Mūsā had Muḥammad Rāsikh Bey removed from his governorship and the province divided into two, based on

Khartoum Khartoum or Khartum is the capital city of Sudan as well as Khartoum State. With an estimated population of 7.1 million people, Greater Khartoum is the largest urban area in Sudan. Khartoum is located at the confluence of the White Nile – flo ...

and

Sennar Sennar ( ') is a city on the Blue Nile in Sudan and possibly the capital of the state of Sennar. For several centuries it was the capital of the Funj Kingdom of Sennar and until at least 2011, Sennar was the capital of Sennar State. Histo ...

. One of his first acts as governor-general was to lead a reconnaissance-in-force to the border with Ethiopia, which was plagued by incessant cross-border slave raiding. He wintered at Dunkur in 1862–63 while he dispatched forces to raid

Wehni Wehni () is the name of one of the mountains of Ethiopia where most of the male heirs to the Emperor of Ethiopia were interned, usually for life. It was the last of the three such mountains, or ''amba (geology), amba'', said to have been used for ...

and

Welkait Welkait (also spelled Welkayt, Wolkait or Wolqayt) is a woreda in Western Zone, Tigray Region. This woreda is bordered to the north by Humera and to the south by Tsegede. It is bordered on the east by the North West Zone; the woredas of Taht ...

and to burn Mai Qubba on the Tekezé, where some Jaʿlīyīn refugees under the son of ''Makk'' Nimr were staying. Mūsā introduced the

carriage A carriage is a two- or four-wheeled horse-drawn vehicle for passengers. In Europe they were a common mode of transport for the wealthy during the Roman Empire, and then again from around 1600 until they were replaced by the motor car around 1 ...

to Khartoum. He rode behind runners in the fashion of the ruler of Egypt. He was one of the few Sudanese governors to attain the honorary rank of '' Rumeli beylerbeysi''. He died in Khartoum of

smallpox Smallpox was an infectious disease caused by Variola virus (often called Smallpox virus), which belongs to the genus '' Orthopoxvirus''. The last naturally occurring case was diagnosed in October 1977, and the World Health Organization (W ...

and was buried in a ''

qubba A ''qubba'' (, pl. ''qubāb''), also transliterated as ḳubba, kubbet and koubba, is a cupola or domed structure, typically a tomb or shrine in Islamic architecture. In many regions, such as North Africa, the term ''qubba'' is applied commonly f ...

'' (domed tomb) on ʿAbbās Avenue.Andrew McGregor (2001)
"The Circassian Qubba-s of Abbas Avenue, Khartoum: Governors and Soldiers in 19th Century Sudan"
''Nordic Journal of African Studies'' 10(1): 28–40. Assessments of his character are generally negative. His methods of tax collection made him unpopular locally, and his successor as governor-general, Jaʿfar Pasha Ṣādiq, considered him corrupt and a drunkard. The French explorer Guillaume Lejean lambasted him as a hangman and slaver, especially towards the Baqqāra, and the British consul in Khartoum, John Petherick, agreed that he was excessively cruel. The German explorer

Theodor von Heuglin Martin Theodor von Heuglin (20 March 1824, Hirschlanden, Württemberg5 November 1876), was a German explorer and ornithologist. Biography Heuglin was born in Hirschlanden (now part of Ditzingen) in Württemberg. His father was a Protestant past ...

, however, praised his friendly disposition towards Europeans.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Musa Pasha Hamdi Egyptian people of Circassian descent 1810s births 1865 deaths 19th-century Egyptian politicians 19th-century Sudanese people Year of birth uncertain